Miraval, recently named the top-ranked destination spa in America by Travel + Leisure magazine for the third consecutive year, announces the appointment of Andrew Weil, M.D., as the director of integrative health and healing.

“For years I have been talking about a new kind of healthcare institution as well as a residential healing center that is a hybrid of a clinic and a spa,” Weil says. “This will be a demonstration of that model.”

Weil has devoted 30 years to developing, practicing and teaching others about the principles of integrative medicine. He combines a Harvard education and a lifetime of practicing natural and preventive medicine to provide a unique approach to healthcare that encompasses body, mind and spirit. In this new role, he will create an integrative-health agenda that will include medicinal plants and mind-body interactions. He also will create the health and wellness programming and services for Miraval’s new Center for Life In Balance, scheduled to open in 2007.

“Dr. Weil and I have known each other for 20 years, and we share a common vision of helping people transform their lives by making healthy and conscious choices for themselves,” says Bill O’Donnell, founder and CEO of Miraval.